Interview: Blaqstarr Spaces Out

Blaqstarr’s Divine EP came out last week, a strange and sexed up Galactic Quest that channels slurred AutoTune as much as the future-club drum breaks he is usually known for. Since releasing his last EP three years ago, Blaqstarr has moved to LA, produced for MIA and signed to Interscope via her NEET imprint, and, apparently, transcended space to conquer the cosmos.

It’s been a little while since you released King of Roq.I’ve been doing a lot of production work and working on my self-craft. Building Blaqstarr and at the same time attending to DJ Blaqstarr. There are two different parts: the Blaqstarr side is the artist side, and DJ Blaqstarr is more of a Baltimore Club production style. When I perform, sometimes I have an identity fit onstage. Most of the time I’ll sing as Blaqstarr, then I’ll flip back over to DJ Blaqstarr, like, “Yeah y’all, what it is. I’ma need everybody’s hands in the air, something something.” I’ve got fans on both sides, and I’m merging the fans where I can almost make it one, so they can understand that everything is global here. It’s a global sound. Global warming.

How would you describe Baltimore’s influence on your music?It’s the root of my music. When a plant grows it starts off with the roots and next thing you know it turns into a tree. The tree is basically me, and the roots would be my city. You ever hear of the story Jack and The Beanstalk? When the tree went up to the heavens? Well this is a more cosmic situation than that. It’s more like a universal cosmic situation. The sound and the vibrations of my sound travel worldwide, even to that new planet NASA was talking about. I receive signals from there. I consider myself a vessel.

Has moving to LA changed how you approach music?I can’t really tell the difference between LA and Baltimore because I’m holed up in my craft. The only thing I notice is when I look out the window I see palm trees. But it has expanded my horizons, enabling me to experience the fullness of powers hitting in nature. When I’m on my higher self, which is all the time, I’m always transcending higher self messages that I absorb through the universe, through nature.

What was it like producing for MIA?Our vibrations fed off of each other, we both transcended through the universe. Our energies together made a powerful form on both our missions, on all our missions. I am what I am because of who we all are. Ubuntu. Her transcending the energies of the universe the way she did and the way I do it, it’s all blessing to the universe, through the universe, through us.

This EP sounds more positive than your older material.I was always a positive person, but I just realized that the imperfections in the world are something that’s perfect. We’re in an imperfect world, we’re imperfect characters in the world, so therefore I’m perfect for this mission to let it be known that what may be perceived as bad is not really bad. There’s good in everything that is done, it’s just misunderstood. Like the word pussy. When you say pussy you get a good feeling in your chest, in your legs and other places in your body. Why is it considered a bad word? I could go into detail on every word I could say that’s not really bad, but I’d rather turn it over to the mission. Step by step, like they said: a journey of a thousand starts with one step, and through my divine mission I will help others realize.

Realize what?I want all of their good feelings and good emotions to be expressed. They might hear a word or a phrase, be like, “Oh my goodness,” and they might laugh. That laughter generates a happy feeling, a fun energy. I just use fun because it’s three letters and everybody can relate to it. If I was to go off on every feeling I get… I’m going to come out with that book. The book of what the music is to me, a lot of books. I’m going to make it a one word title. I’m going to keep fun the word because a lot of people like fun. People that work like fun, people that don’t work like fun. Everything is all love. It’s all about love, living life, and uniting.